It was another unpredicatble round of Damallsvenskan fixtures in Sweden, with wins for Rosengård, Djurgården, Linköping, Piteå and Eskilstuna, elsewhere Örebro, Kvarnsveden and Vittsjö all picked up the odd point.
Limhamn Bunkeflo 0-1 Rosengård
Playing in phases, the hosts started well before Rosengård took the reins, on top for most of the second-half, Ella Masar saw a shot cleared off of the line before Josephine Frigge claimed a looped header. A late first-half flurry from LB07 was wasted, the ball pining around in the box at a corner before the referee blew for the break.
Having composed themselves at half-time, the hosts were made to pay for their lack of finish when Erin McLeod sent a long goal-kick over midfield, Masar the recipient as she squeezed away from Elin Björklund. A late and hopeful challenge by Anna Björk Kristjánsdóttir wasn’t enough to stop the attacker after she had already rounded Frigge. In the match until the whistle, Limhamn saw chance after chance go begging as they took nothing from the Malmö derby in front of almost 8,000 fans.
Djurgården 1-0 Hammarby
Dominating proceedings from the off, DIF were left frustrated after the referee ruled out Katrin Schmidt’s seventh minute effort, the away defence stubborn, refusing to let anything through. The deadlock finally broken after the hour by substitute Hanna Lundqvist, her legs fresh as she charged into the box to send Mia Jalkerud’s lay-off past Emma Holmgren and into the back of the net. The win enough to take Djurgården up to fourth, a far cry from the shaky team of the first part of the season, but Hammarby continue to toil around the relegation zone.
Kopparbergs/Göteborg 0-2 Linköping
A one-two between Lina Hurtig and Marija Banušić saw the pair slip through the home box before Hurtig squared the ball for Kristine Minde, the Norwegian arriving at the perfect time to poke home. Well off of the pace in the first-half of the season but looking far better after the summer break, Göteborg responded well and kept themselves in the game, a smart save from Cajsa Andersson all that stopped them finding an instant equaliser.
With the game finely poised at 1-0 both continued to attack with gusto, Linköping able to ride their luck at points in the second-half before Hurtig made sure of the points in stoppage time, striking Tove Almqvist’s lay-off first time to scoop the ball into the far corner from the top of the box.
The match encouraging for both, Göteborg still showing improvements and clear of the drop zone. Linköping back to winning ways, a nose ahead of FCR, still digging out wins despite not being on a song.
KIF Örebro 3-3 Kvarnsveden
In the most unpredictable game of the round both sides wrestled with each other throughout, the points going one way before the other and around again before a penalty at the death saw the spoils shared.
Lova Lundin grabbed her second goal of the year thirteen minutes in when she slipped in behind to latch onto Elizabeth Addo’s through ball and slot it beyond Carola Söberg. Phased out of the game somewhat, KIF did well to work their way back in after the break, Hanna Terry on hand to knock Jenny Hjohlman’s square ball in from close range. Another ball out from the back dropped well for Hjohlman who once more rode the offside trap to find space behind before chipping Jenny Wahlén from a wide-angle moments after Terry had seen a weak penalty saved.
No strangers to a late goal, Addo looked to have claimed a point for KIK when she swept the ball through a crowd and into the bottom corner from the top of the box. But there was yet more drama when Örebro seemed to have claimed all three points in the first minute of stoppage time, Terry atoning for her penalty miss with a neat header from Marina Pettersson-Engström’s free kick. However there was still one twist to the match when Michaela Hermansson was tripped in the box by Freja Olofsson just six minutes after she had come on, the referee once again quick to point to the spot. Already over the allotted three minutes of stoppage by the time Addo stepped up to the spot, the Ghanaian extended her right boot to slip the ball just past a diving Söberg. Emotions high as the game finished in a draw both sides in very real danger of relegation.
Piteå 2-1 Kristianstad
Still struggling for their home usually reliable home form, PIF looked lost once more as they took to the pitch at the LF Arena, Kristianstad up within the first half and hour when Rita Chikwelu slotted Ogonna Chukwudi’s hopeful low ball past Hilda Carlén and into the back of the net. Off of the pace in the first-half, Piteå steadied themselves after the break and found an unlikely equaliser fifteen minutes from time through Josefin Johansson, the captain quick to sort her feet out and dispatch the ball into the bottom corner.
The third and most unexpected goal of the game followed seven minutes later courtesy of Madelen Janogy, the 21-year-old happy to skip through the fragmented midfield before finding enough space 20-yards out to lash a low shot goalwards, Brett Maron beaten once more. The win enough to keep PIF fifth but yet again, more points needlessly dropped by Kristianstad.
Rosengård 2-2 Vittsjö
Cruising at home, Rosengård hit their visitors for a quick-fire double just before the half hour, Hanna Folkesson’s bullet header enough to get the better of Shannon Lynn before Ali Riley’s cross-cum-shot looped into the far corner from 20 yards. Dominating the game, FCR saw chances go begging throughout, Vittsjö able to claw one back from a rare attack after the break, Emmi Alanen perfectly placed to volley Genessee Daughetee’s attempted curler into the back of the net.
The goal gave the visitors something to hang onto though most were still left shocked when they pulled level fifteen minutes from time, Linda Sällström deadly as ever from the spot after being felled by Caroline Seger. The hosts could have grabbed a later winner, Seger’s far post header enough to beat Lynn but not Daughetee as the new signing headed off of the line, the points shared.
Eskilstuna United 4-0 Limhamn Bunkeflo
Dominant from the get go, United took an early lead through Olivia Schough, the Swedish international in space to bring Fiona Brown’s lofted cross down before knocking it into the far corner inside of 100 seconds. From then on the hosts refused to look back, LB07 scrappy and disjointed as Eskilstuna picked them apart time and again though able to hold onto a respectable scoreline until the break.
The second goal arrived six minutes into the second-half, Loreta Kullashi allowed two bites of the cherry, the ball swept home with the defenders diving in front of her, powerless to prevent the goal, the barrage only just beginning. A simple through-ball gave Mimmi Larsson something to chase seven minutes later, running in behind the attacker grabbed her eighth of the season with an easy finish to best Josephine Frigge. The final nail hammered into the coffin by Kullashi, the teenager catching the eye with an audacious lob from just outside the box. Frigge out of position after blocking Larsson’s initial effort and Malin Winberg only able to head the ball into the roof of the net on the line for their second biggest loss of the year.
The win Eskilstuna’s second on the spin and the first time they’ve won back-to-back games since May.
